February 01, 2010

Brenda Weber on Gender Testing in Athletics

The case of South African track and field star Caster Semenya has recently caused many people to ask where we should draw the "line" in terms of gender in athletics. Brenda Weber, author of Makeover TV: Selfhood, Citizenship, and Celebrity, argues at NPR.org that a "line" is the wrong metaphor to use in the complicated issue of determining someone's sex/gender. She writes, "A line suggests that there are clear distinctions, yet the truth is
that bodies are far more diverse than our popular terminology for sex
and gender allow." As we approach the Olympic Games in Vancouver, Weber says, "The IOC would be better served were it to let all sexed bodies compete
in the Olympics and instead re-direct their attentions and energies to
a new classification system that makes other distinctions between
athletes rather than the exclusive segregation of male and female."